Complete Streets & Bikeway Committee

COMPLETE STREETS COMMITTEE CITY OF MIDDLETOWN, CT August 13, 2018 Meeting Minutes In attendance: Howard Reid, Tom Quirk, Beth Emory, Ron Krom Guests: Lisa Liesener 1. Review of minutes: Accepted. 2. Old Business Bike Routes/Signage 7/9/18: Signage for the bike route will be placed on DeKoven Dr., East Main St., and Millbrook Rd. The timetable has not been specified. 5/14/18: There are no updates though DeKoven Drive now has parking where the bike lanes are to go; this parking is likely to remain until the parking garage on Dingwall Drive is replaced. Traffic Calming 8/13/18: The result of the meeting with PD officials is they will increase signage around the school, add new crosswalks, and add lane divider at the Pearl St. Bridge. No timeline for these changes was established. 7/9/18: CS will be meeting at MacDonough School with a police department representative to do a traffic study on Spring St and address concerns raised by the school principle. Newfield Corridor Path Funding 5/14/18: The city budget meeting is tonight and it is anticipated there will be no additional funding for projects for the next 6 months. Long Lane Trail 5/14/18: This project has been awarded to DeRita Construction and will be completed this summer. Priorities for 2018 Road Projects 1/8/18: In preparation for the annual meeting with Public Works to review the coming road project/bond season, the Committee discussed its priorities. Those identified included projects already in progress, including new priority bike routes, Saybrook Rd, and the Long Lane and Newfield Corridor multi-use trails. Additional possible priorities identified were sidewalks along Butternut St. connecting the park to adjacent neighborhoods, and an examination of traffic signal actuators which respond to bicycles. Wesleyan Bike Share 8/13/18: Spin Bikes has dropped their bike share program and will close up their Middletown program; CS to request a copy of their user data and lessons learned. The user data could help CS pinpoint areas of focus. 7/9/19: No updates from Spin Bikes but per Cindi Perugini they are still working out the kinks in their system. Public Outreach 5/14/18: The NEAT expressed an interest in making Main St. more bike friendly. 4/9/18: CS will attempt to reach out to the North End Action Team and the Village District to identify the groups’ concerns, identify areas CS can try to address, and try to garner support for our cause. Sustainable CT Initiative 8/13/18: The application will be submitted before the end of August. 7/9/18: Wesleyan had an intern working on the submission; they are shooting for silver. 5/14/18: Middletown was the first town to sign up for this new state initiative; the city’s Clean Energy Task Force is currently handling efforts to meet the requirements (until a more formal team can be established). In order to be certified this year a submission of qualifying efforts must be provided by August 24th. CS identified qualifying projects for the submission: West St. & Washington intersection; Ridge Rd sidewalks; Woodrow Wilson School sidewalks; Palmer Field trail; Long Lane sidewalk. Watch For Me CT 8/13/18: Amy emailed the information to Tom Quirk and Howard Reid. Tom summarized the information which was included with the July minutes. The full data file will be distributed to the committee. 7/9/18: Amy Watkins, the Program Coordinator attended the meeting and introduced CS to the resources and assistance her program can provide. Amy suggested some state data bases we may want to research and will compile some crash data for Middletown and forward it to the group. Mayor’s Youth Council 8/13/18: John Hall talked with them getting involved in the bike/walk to school initiative. 7/9/18: CS to ask the Mayor’s office if the Youth Council would be able to help with any of the CS Committee’s goals or projects. Main Street Bike Lanes 8/13/18: CS to reach out to Amy from Tighe & Bond (former CS attendee) for recommendations on who might have experience with this. 7/9/18: CS to approach the Downtown Business District to gauge interest in adding bike lanes to Main St.; if there is interest by the public and the DBD, CS would recommend to the City that a formal/professional study be performed. Saybrook Road, East Main St to Tryon St Project 8/13/18: There is enough funding in the current bonds budget to cover this project; the design is complete and it will be bid this fall. South Main St. Improvements: CS suggestions for improvement would have to be submitted by the city to River Cog for submission to the State/Regional project list. Saybrook Rd near Aircraft Rd: This section of the road has fallen into grave disrepair; CS to consider what can be done. NEW BUSINESS 2018-2019 Goals Discussion: CS discussed possible goals for the new fiscal year: 1. Establish a Middletown Complete Streets website. 2. Finalize Middletown’s first official bike route. 3. Focus on another school for student safety improvements. a. Spencer School path to Plaza Drive Apartments 4. Focus on an apartment complex for pedestrian/bike safety improvements. a. Sidewalk on Butternut St., West St. to Thomas St. 5. Develop guidelines for future bike share programs incorporating lessons learned from Spin. 6. Provide input on updates and revisions to the Middletown Trail Guide brochure and website. 7. Work with the Park and Rec. Dept. and Watch For Me CT to develop public education and awareness. Meeting adjourned at 8:30 PM. Next meeting: September 17th 7pm in Council Chambers